Sowing broad beans: Bunyards Exhibition

Bunyards Exhibition Broad Beans are an old favourite and has earned the RHS Perfect for Pollinators mark – meaning that it’s a great plant for encouraging bees and other insects into pollinating the flowers. They’re said to be versatile and resilient plants that produces a crop that’s ideal for freezing. Broad beans are a great source of vitamin B1 and fibre.

I’m trying to get a little bit of a head start on the some of the crops this year and I’ve read that so long as you have a greenhouse of a cold frame you can sow some of your plants indoors in the hope of an early May harvest.

I’ve sown these Bunyards Exhibition beans two at a time into pots so that I can maximise the amount of space that I have available. When and if they germinate, I’ll look to separate the seedlings into their own individual pots before I plant them out. I’ve buried them around 2cm deep in multi-purpose compost.

I’ve sown them with the eyes pointing upwards, so that when they germinate they’ll be growing in the right direction (although you can’t really see that in the photos below!). Pointing the seeds in the right direction isn’t essential, as over the years I have seen seedlings correct themselves as they strive to face the sun.

Water well and hope for the best!

Bunyards Exhibition update 16/01/2016

After returning to the plot a week later, I was greeted with seeded pots that had been dug up by the mice. Mice love eating seeds, especially beans and peas. I couldn’t believe my luck – it was gutting to witness and I ended up resowing them. I hope you learn from my mistakes and are sure to keep your seedlings away from mice (or lay a deterrent) to ensure your beans germinate without hindrance.

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About me

Hello my name's Adam and I'm a 20-something gardener, blogger and proud allotment holder here in London, UK.
I love growing my own vegetables and experimenting in the the kitchen. My ideal Saturday or Sunday includes working up a sweat at my allotment in the morning, followed by a cup of tea admiring the views.
I've had an allotment for around 10 years now and I show no signs of stopping.